Primary Visual Cortex

The primary visual cortex is located in both hemispheres of the brain's occipital lobe (Brodmann areas 17-19) (hyperlink?) and is located near the calcarine sulcus. Also called V1, this is the evolutionarily oldest and most simple visual system in the brain focusing mostly on simple movements and pattern recognition.

The eyes receive visual information which leaves the retina via the optic nerve and travels to a specific part of the thalamus -- the lateral geniculate nucleus. The primary visual cortex receives the visual radiation information that is sent to by the lateral geniculate nucleus. The primary visual cortex is believed to also be involved in subsequent steps of visual information processing. More simply, the eye takes in the visual information which is then processed by the structures of the primary visual cortex. This information is then encoded and comprehended by the mind as a series of pictures.